Hiring your first employee in Czechia in 2027: employer obligations step by step

Hiring your first employee? Congratulations, the company is growing. It also means a list of obligations towards the Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ), the health insurer, the insurer Kooperativa and the tax office, and some deadlines run before the employee starts. Since April 2026 the new single monthly employer report (JMHZ) rules apply, so older guides are out of date. Here is an overview under the laws in force at the end of 2026 and for 2027.

The employment contract must be in writing and must state the type of work, the place of work and the start date (Section 34). Each party receives one copy. Anything not in the contract (for example holiday entitlement, working hours, pay and payday, notice period) must be given to the employee in writing within 7 days of the start of employment (Section 37). Pay must not be lower than the minimum wage, which in 2027 is CZK 24,900 a month or CZK 148.30 an hour. The hourly rate applies to a 40-hour working week; with a shorter statutory working week (for example 37.5 hours) the hourly minimum wage increases proportionally (Section 111(4) and (5)).

Since 1 April 2026 employers register in the employer register at ČSSZ. This registration also replaced the separate registration as a payer of employment income tax at the tax office; the Financial Administration takes the data from the ČSSZ register. You must register at the latest 2 working days before your first employee starts, and at the earliest 15 days before (Section 17 of the JMHZ Act). The payroll office is registered within the same period. Filing is electronic only, via data box or the ČSSZ ePortal. ČSSZ assigns you a variable symbol that you then use on all filings.

You register the employee in the employee register at the latest before the moment they start work, and at the earliest 8 days before (Section 19 of the JMHZ Act). If you do not yet have all the details, a partial registration is enough: first name, surname, birth surname, birth number, place of birth, citizenship, expected start date and the employer's variable symbol. You add the rest within 8 days of the start (Section 19(2)). Partial registration cannot be used for a foreign employee. If the employee does not start after all, you report it within 8 days of the expected start date.

Health insurance is not part of JMHZ. You therefore notify the employee's health insurer of the start separately, within 8 days (Section 10 of Act No. 48/1997 Coll.). The same applies later to the end of employment or a change of insurer.

As soon as you employ at least one employee, you are insured by law against liability for work injuries and occupational diseases, and you must pay the premium (Decree No. 125/1993 Coll., Section 12). You must notify the insurer in writing without undue delay. New employers are insured by law with Kooperativa (Generali Česká pojišťovna, formerly Česká pojišťovna, is the insurer only for employers that had this insurance with Česká pojišťovna on 31 December 1992, and their legal successors). This is the obligation most often forgotten with a first employee.

The employer must tell the employee which occupational health provider will carry out their check-ups (Section 103 of the Labour Code). For employment contracts, an entry medical check is always required for work classified in category 2, 2R, 3 or 4 and for work with special health requirements. For DPP and DPČ agreements it is mandatory only for risk work (categories 2R, 3 and 4). For ordinary office work in category 1 you may require it, but it is not mandatory (Section 59(1) of Act No. 373/2011 Coll.).

The employer must identify and assess work risks, brief the employee on them and on health and safety rules, and inform them of the category of their work (Sections 101 to 103 of the Labour Code). The employer itself classifies work as category 2 within 30 calendar days of starting it and notifies the regional public health authority without delay. Classification as category 3 or 4 is decided by the public health authority on an application filed within 30 days. Work that is not classified is category 1 (Section 37 of Act No. 258/2000 Coll.). Smaller companies usually use an external qualified person for this.

On top of gross pay the employer pays social insurance of 24.8% and health insurance of 9%. The employee has social insurance of 7.1%, health insurance of 4.5% and the tax advance deducted from pay.

Add the statutory liability insurance premium, occupational health services and health and safety. For your own figures use the payroll calculator or the net salary calculator.

Details are in Payroll and employer changes in 2027.

With one employee you can handle payroll yourself. But you will run into three things: you need payroll software compatible with JMHZ, you must keep up with legislative changes (2027 alone changes the minimum wage, DPP thresholds, taxation of agreements and benefits) and you need cover, because deadlines do not move for holidays or sick leave. With payroll outsourcing we take care of:

You keep signing the employment contract, recording attendance and health and safety. Our price depends only on the number of payslips actually processed, with no monthly minimum, so it pays off even for a company with a single employee. Once you grow beyond 25 employees, the mandatory quota for employing people with disabilities applies (4%, Section 81 of the Employment Act). We keep an eye on that too.

Sources (as of 27 October 2026): Act No. 323/2025 Coll. on the single monthly employer report (Sections 7, 17, 19), Financial Administration — changes to registration of employment-tax payers, ČSSZ — employer register, Labour Code No. 262/2006 Coll. (Sections 34, 37, 96, 101 to 103, 111, 365), Act No. 48/1997 Coll. (Section 10), Decree No. 125/1993 Coll. (Sections 1 and 12), Act No. 373/2011 Coll. on specific health services (Section 59), Act No. 589/1992 Coll. (Sections 7 and 9), Act No. 592/1992 Coll. (Sections 5 and 25), Act No. 258/2000 Coll. on Public Health Protection (Section 37), Act No. 180/2026 Coll. (student credit, kindergarten credit, benefits from 2027), Generali Česká pojišťovna — employer liability, Act No. 586/1992 Coll. on Income Taxes (Sections 6(4) and (9), 35bc, 38h, 38ha, 38hb, 38j and 38k), Act No. 435/2004 Coll. on Employment (Section 81) MPSV Communication No. 171/2026 Coll. announcing the minimum wage (CZK 24,900 and CZK 148.30 for 2027) and Government Regulation No. 164/2026 Coll. on the minimum-wage coefficients.